Susan's Place Transgender Resources

April 29, 2013 • 11:48 PM
British airline mogul loses bet, agrees to be a '->-bleeped-<- for a day'

http://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2013/04/29/british-airline-mogul-loses-bet-must-be-a-->-bleeped-<--for-a-day/ (http://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2013/04/29/british-airline-mogul-loses-bet-must-be-a--%3E-bleeped-%3C--for-a-day/)

THE GUERRILLA ANGEL REPORT — Richard Branson,Virgin Air CEO, lost a wager to AirAsia X boss Tony Fernandes, and agrees to dress in drag and serve as a flight "stewardess" on Fernandes' airline.

While I cannot say for sure if this exploitation was initiated by the writer of the source article or if Branson and Fernandes are pulling off a PR stunt, but either way, it slams trans people — 'You lose, you gotta be a ->-bleeped-<-,' we're sick of this.

From the eTN article: "Branson is keen on putting a check mark on what may very well be called a kind of "final frontier," when he becomes the first gender-bending airline CEO in history to serve on an actual flight. Branson himself has admitted to have "done some outrageous things" in his life, but becoming a ->-bleeped-<- for a day "will be up there with the best of them."

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VisitBritain reacts to Virgin boss becoming a ->-bleeped-<- for a day

By Nelson Alcantara, eTN editor-in-chief | Apr 28, 2013

http://www.eturbonews.com/34628/visitbritain-reacts-virgin-boss-becoming-->-bleeped-<--day (http://www.eturbonews.com/34628/visitbritain-reacts-virgin-boss-becoming--%3E-bleeped-%3C--day)

Sir Richard Branson, the man who transformed British aviation, will soon be undergoing a kind of a transformation himself. The airline mogul is set to become the first airline CEO in history to dress-up and serve as a flight stewardess.

British airline moguls are known for their knack in attracting attention to promote their products. Branson dressing up in drag and serving as a flight attendant could easily be construed as just another ploy to sell more seats. Except, Branson will be serving as a flight attendant for rival AirAsiaX. Now why would Branson do such a thing? Because of a bet, apparently. Branson, who owns Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Racing Formula One team, had a wager with AirAsia X and Lotus Racing boss Tony Fernandes over whose team would finish highest in the 2010 racing championships. The agreement was whoever loses would serve as a flight attendant on the other person's airline. Well, Branson lost.

AirAsiaX CEO Tony Fernandes has said Branson has to comply with his company's grooming standards and that includes shaving his legs, donning high heels, putting on some makeup, and slipping into the AirAsia's famous red uniform. This task does not only entail serving champagne to guests but "->-bleeped-<--for-a-day" Branson is expected to take on regular duties on the flight, including cleaning the toilets. "He will be committed to carry out the responsibilities of a flight attendant, including offering coffee, tea, and other food and beverages to guests on the special six-hour Perth to Kuala Lumpur flight," Fernandes was quoted as saying.

Quote from: Shana A on April 30, 2013, 08:21:27 PM
This task does not only entail serving champagne to guests but "->-bleeped-<--for-a-day" Branson is expected to take on regular duties on the flight, including cleaning the toilets.

Well. . . I hope those are some very dirty toilets he has to clean. This is just sad. What a horrible way to attract publicity for the business, no one would go out in black face or dressed in Indigenous peoples clothing for a day on an airline and not get any negative pushback, but its seen as a playful joke to disrespect this minority group.

At first read this story didn't bother me, but now that I had time to think about it, yeah it does bother me. Not so much that Richard Branson is going to be a stewardess on a competitor's airline. I actually think thats funny.

But for the fact that he used the word ->-bleeped-<- when describing the wager on the bet. If it said that he was dressing as a stewardess and working as one because of a lost bet. For me this would be a non issue

I think it's funny and kind of a Freudian slip

Not so much bad news. Actually, it can help people know about transgender, as most people do not tell between gays and transgender people.

barbie~~